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The World Architecture Festival (WAF) has revealed a 434-strong shortlist – its biggest ever – for its 10th awards in Berlin this November

The finalists feature 49 projects from the UK, including four by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris and one by WilkinsonEyre, whose Battersea Power Station Phase 2 has been nominated in the Commercial Mixed-Use category.

There were 924 entries to the18 categories at this year’s awards – an 18 per cent increase on the year before – with projects from 68 different countries.

Other UK names on the shortlist are Peter Salter Associates, whose Walmer Yard was shortlisted in for the Housing category; Eric Parry Architects, which has two schemes shortlisted, including One Undershaft, the approved tallest tower in the City of London, in the Commercial Mixed-Use category; and Marks Barfield Architects, whose British Airways i360 was shortlisted in the Hotel and Leisure category.

UK architects are most widely represented among the finalists, followed by practices from the USA, Australia and Turkey.

In addition, a number of schemes from outside the UK, but designed by leading British practices, were shortlisted. These include Zaha Hadid Architects’ Port House in Belgium and Salerno Maritime Terminal in Italy; AL_A’s Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology in Portugal; Grimshaw’s Duke University West Campus Union in the USA; SimpsonHaugh’s Queen Elisabeth Hall in Belgium; and Heatherwick Studio’s MOCAA in South Africa.

International stars on the shortlist include BIG, Neri & Hu, Rafael Viñoly Architects, and Nikken Sekkei.

WAF programme director Paul Finch said: ‘This year’s shortlist has a hugely diverse geographic range. The use of water has been striking and there is evidence of real interest in climate modifications using novel techniques.

’Colourful architecture makes a strong showing and many of the smaller projects we have shortlisted will punch above their weight.’

The awards for the festival, which this year has the theme of ‘Performance’, will be judged by more than 100 international judges. Meanwhile, the 2017 Completed Buildings category, which will decide which is the best of the 18 category winners, will be judged by a so-called ‘Super Jury’.

This jury, chaired by chief executive officer of the American Institute of Architects Robert Ivy, is made up of Nathalie de Vries, director and co-founder of Dutch practice MVRDV; Ian Ritchie, founder of London-based Ian Ritchie Architects; Christoph Ingenhoven, founder of German practice Ingenhoven Architects; and Wong Mun Summ, founder director of Singapore practice WOHA.

A virtual London Festival of Architecture will take place next month, it has been revealed, with building tours, a wide range of talks, a pub quiz and even a bake-off all moving online because of the coronavirus

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